Don’t count on flat-out push for victory, says ERC leader Lukyanuk

Alexey Lukyanuk has suggested that he might not go flat-out in order to return to winning ways in the FIA European Rally Championship in Cyprus this week.

The Russian’s unbeaten run ended on the EKO Acropolis Rally earlier this month and his leg-two retirement allowed Bruno Magalhães to slash his title advantage to 14 points.

Speaking ahead of the Cyprus Rally, which is based in Larnaca from 15-17 June, Lukyanuk said multiple winner Nasser Al-Attiyah’s appearance on the event – which is currently a one-off – has altered his way of thinking.

“We know Nasser can be really fast and if it takes too much risk to compete with him maybe we will think to back off a bit and score as much points as we can without taking any extra risks,” Lukyanuk said. “But on the other hand if we feel really comfortable and confident to set a really good pace then we will do that. It depends on many things but definitely we will think when we see after the recce before we make the final decision about our approach to the event.”